Toy automobile and rapid-fire gun.



1. B. BLACKSHEAR.

TOY`AUTOMOB|LE AND RAPID FIRE GUN.

APPLICATION F|LED1AN.4.191B.

Patented Dec. 31, 1918.

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JAMES BAYARD BLACKSHEAR, OF HONOLULU, TERRITORY OF HAWAII.

TOY AUTOMOBILE AND RAPID-FIRE GUN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented ilec. 31, 19.18.

Application filed January 4, 1918. Serial No. 210,355.

To all 107mm t may concern:

lie it known that l. Jmlns B. Bnxcirsrrnan, a citizen of the l'nitedStates. and a resident, of the city and county of Honolulu. Territory ofllawaii. have vinvented a new and lmproved Toy Automobile andltapid-l"irc (tun. of which the following is a full, clear7 and exactdescription.

My invention relates to a toy. and more particularly to a toy the bodyof which simulates an armored automobile and which is equipped with arapid lire. gun automatically fed and discharged in unison with thepropulsion of the automobile.Y

Objects of the invention are to provide in a toy of the indicatedcharacter a rapid fire gun coordinated with the structure and propellingmeans of the automobile; to provide for automatic 'feeding of theprojectiles with the minimum liability of the feed means becomingchoked: and to insure the unfailing discharge of the projectilel insingle session.

More specifically the invention has for objects to provide a noveloperating means for the plunger of the gun and a novel arrangement ofdevices for actuating said operating means by a spring motor. which isgeared also with the driven axle of the automobile to propel the latter.Y

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part ofthis specification in which similar reference characters indicatecorresponding parts in all the views, it being understood that thedrawings are merely illustrative of one example of the invention.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section on the line 1-1, Fig. :2.with the parts in the position occupied after the discharge of theprojectile;

Fig. 2 is a plan View;

Fig. 3 is a detail longitudinal vertical section of the gun and theplunger operating means;

Fig. 1 is a transverse vertical section on the line L -4. Fig. 1. thecrank shaft for actuating the plunger operating means being at adiHerent. angle from that illustrated in Fig. 1:

Fig. 5 is a detail in horizontal section on the line 5-5, Fig. 1.

In Carrying out my invention in practice in accordance with theillustrated exampley a body 10 is provided and given generally a form tosimulate an armored automobile.

The body has a. front axle 11 and a rear driven axle 12. wheels 13.

A gun 14 is mounted in the body and in the illustrated example the gunhas a bracket 1T secured to a transverse shaft or rod 1G. The muzzle. ofthe gun projects through the front of the automobile while the breechand the operating mechanism yare within. A plunger 1T is provided. theforward end extending into the, gun barrel aml the rear portion havingguided movement. in the frame 13 rigid with the gun. The plunger isacted upon b v a coil spring 19 surrounding the same, `said springabutting at its rear end against the rear end of the frame 18 and at itsforward end against. an adjustable set collar 20 for varying thc tensionof the spring. An operating bar 21 has an articulated connection withthe plunger 1T as by a pivot 2Q and said bar extends through a suitableguide such as the slot 23 in a bracket Q4 at the interior of the body10. The rear end of the bar 21 may extend through a slot in the back ofthe body for manual operation of the-gun should that be desired. Meansis provided to automatically actuato the operating arm 21 from a driveshaft '26. For the purpose shaft a motor spring 29 in a spring barrel 28loose on said shaft. The inner end of the spring is secured to the shaft2G and the outer end to the barrel Q8. The shaft Q6 is adapted to beturned for winding the spring b v means of a key Q7 receivable on saidshaft at the exterior of the body 10 after the manner of a clockspindle. Rigid with the spring barrel 28 or otherwise arranged to turntherewith is a gear wheel 30 which meshes with a pinion 31 on a crankshaft 32. the crank 33 of which turns beneath the operating arm 21 andis adapted to engage in a notch 21a at the lower edge thereof in theturning of the shaft 3Q. the arrangement being such that at eachrevolution of the shaft 32 the. crank 33 thereon Will automaticallyengage in the arm 21 to place the spring 19 under tension and thenautomatically release the bar to permit the reaction of the spring toforce the plunger forwardly for discharging the projectile. 0n the shaftQ6 also is a ratchet wheel 31 engaged by a holding pawl 35 on a studshaft 3G. the pawl being subject to a spring 37 secured at one end to a.stud 33 or the like.

The pivotal connection of the bar 21 with and these have running' thereis mounted on said..

the plunger permits of raising said bar out of the path of the crank 32,whereby the bar may be manually operated independently of themotor-driven means; and also, since the mere lifting of said bar throwsthe same out of operative connection with the crank, the period offiring by the motor-driven means may be thus manually controlled.

The. spring 29 constitutesalso the propelling means for the automobilefor which purpose the rear axle 12 has driving connection through a geartrain with the shaft 26. In the illustrated example the gear pinion 30meshes with a pinion 39 on a shaft 40,

Athe latter shaft having also a pinion 41 meshing with a kpinion 42 onthe axle 12. A suitable governor is providedy in connection with thegear train, there being shown a known form of fan governor 43 on theshaft 40. v g

The projectiles 44, which consist of balls, are contained in a magazine45 simulating a turret and from the bottom of the magazine a feed tube46 extends downwardly and communicates with a vertical breech opening 47in the gun 14 leading to the bore thereof. In the bore a depression 48is roduced in line with thebreech o ening 4 to retain a ball 44unti1forcibly ejected by the plunger 17. In order to prevent the balls' fromcrowding together at the mouth of the feed tube 46 and choking thelatter, I provide a vguard in the form of a dome or shell 49 in theturret magazine 45 over the said feed tube, .the said guard havinglateral inlet openings 50 in the sidesthereof to admit the balls fromvarious directions in limited number while preventing the weight of themass from being imposed upon the balls being fed. To charge the magazinethe cap 51 thereof is removable and has a knob 52 or the like.

With the above described construction the spring having been wound andtending to turn the shaft 26 forwardly through the gear elements 30, 31,the crank shaft 32 will be turned rearwardly, each revolution engagingthe crank 33 with the notch 21a of operating arm 21 so thatsimultaneously with the driving axle 12 through the described clocktrain, the arm 2l will be drawn rearwardly with each revolution of theshaft 32 and then released, the balls 44 gravitationally andautomatically feeding in single succession in front of the plunger 17 asthe latter is withdrawn in the compression of the spring 19. Thus, arapid fire of vthe projectiles will take place with the prolpulsion ofthe toy, and if it be desired'to 'manually restrain the body 10 fromforward movement, the operating arm 21 may be manually actuated bygrasping the rear end thereof at the slot 25. It will be observed thatthe operating arm 21 rests freely in the guide 24 at the bottom oftheslot 23 and is intermittently engaged and disengaged by the actuatingcrank 33 when the shaft 32 is permitted to turn so that the operatingbar is free to be manually controlled when desii-cd. It will be evidentalso that the automay be maintained by blocking up the front wheels.

I would state in conclusion that while the illustated exampleconstitutes a practical embodiment of my invention, I do not limitmyself strictly to the mechanical details herein illustrated, sincemanifestly the same can be considerably varied without departure fromthe spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new, and desire to secureby Letters Patent:

l 1.. A toy automobile including a gun thereon, a motor on theautomobile drive means to propel the automobile by said motor, and meansto automatically feed and discharge the gun by the operation of saidmotor simultaneously with the operation of said drive means.v

'2. A toy of the class described including'a gun, a spring-pressedplunger, an operating bar pivotally connected with the plunger, and arotary element turning in a path to engage said'bar at each revolutionto give a rearwardmovement-to the plunger and then disengage said bar torelease the plunger, the pivotal connection of the said bar permittingof the latter being swung out of the path of said rotary'element to bemanually controllable independently of said rotary element.

- 3. A toy of the class described includingaI structure, a gun thereon,means to feed projectiles to the breech of the gun, a springpressedplunger operating inv said gun, a drive axle on said structure arotaryelement, means to give a forward movement to the drive axle andsimultaneously a rearward movement to the said rotary element, and a barpivoted at its forward end to said plunger and-lying at its rear end" inthe path of movement of said rotary element to be intermittently engagedby the latter to give a rearward movement tothe plunger and compress itsspring and then disengage the operating bar to release the plunger andpermit reaction of said spring.

4. A toy of the class described including a structure, a gun mountedthereon, a springpressed plunger operating in said gun, an

operating bar pivoted at one end to the rear end of said plunger, aguide element in which said bar is rockable and slidable, a

rotary element turning in a path to inter- 1E mittently engage and thendisengage said bar, ,and means to actuate said rotary element, thepivotal connection of the bar serving to cause said bar normally togravltationally tend to lie in the path of the rotary element butpermitting of the bar being swung away from said path to be manuallycontrollable independently of said element.

5. A toy of the class described including a gun, a spring-pressedplunger operating in said gun, a bar ivoted at its forward end to therear end o the plunger, means to support the bar to permit it to havesliding and rocking movement, said bar having a notch at the under side,a shaft having acrank adapted to turn rearwardly in a path to engage inthe said notch, and means to drive said shaft, the pivotal connection ofsaid bar permitting the swinging of the same out of the path of thecrank to free the bar of the control of the crank.

6. In a toy of the class described, a gun, means to discharge aprojectile from said gun, a magazine above the gun, a feed tube leadingdownwardly from the magazine to the breech of the gun to gravitationallyfeed projectiles, and a guard over` the mouth of said feed tube, saidguard having a closed top and having inlet openings variously disposedabout the guard at the sides for the entrance of projectiles from themagazine in various directions to the feed tube.

JAMES BAYARD BLAOKSHEAR.

